Ventilated metal umbrella



Oct. 18, 1949. D H. SIMPSON VENTILATED METAL UMBRELLA 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 29, 1948 mama.

llll ll ATTORNEY 1949- D. H. SIMPSON I v VENTILATED METAL UMBRELLA 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 29, 1948 Patented Oct. 18, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 3 Claims.

This invention relates to ventilated metal umbrellas of the type suitable for yard or beach use.

One of the objects of my invention is to provide a durable metal umbrella which can be easily assembled and erected in loose earth or sand and will provide a convenient sun shade.

Another object is to provide a metal umbrella top with means for ventilation so that heated air will travel in channels upward along the underside of the top and out thru a central covered vent;

Still another object is to provide a metal umbrella having a top fabricated from sheet metal with novel and efficient mounting means on a supporting staff so that it can easily be attached to and detached from the staff; said attaching means being combined with an angle adjusting means arranged so that the top may be tilted relative to the staff to afford better shade protection during the early and late hours of the day, and so that the top may be rotated about portions of the staff to secure shade as desired.

Other objects will appear hereinafter.

I attain the foregoing objects by means of the construction and devices shown in the accompany drawings in which- Figure l is a side elevation of my umbrella;

Figure 2, a vertical section thereof drawn on a somewhat larger scale;

Figure 3, a partial plan view of the-top;

Figure 4, an arcuate section of a portion of said top taken substantially on line 44, Figure 3;

Figure 5, a vertical section taken at right angles to the section shown in Figure 2; and

Figure 6, an elevational view of the central sleeve portion of the staff showing the side opposite to that appearing in Figure 1, but drawn on an enlarged scale.

Similar numerals refer to similar parts in the several views.

The umbrella, in general, consists of a top 2, a staff 3, a supporting point 4, and adjusting and mounting mechanism indicated by numeral 5.

The top is preferably made from light sheet metal first cut in the form of sectors and then folded on radial lines to provide alternate ridge sectors ill and valley sectors II. The material at the edges l2 of the ridge sectors is bent downward and slightly inward forming ridge side walls 14. At the bottom of these walls the material is bent outward at l 6 to form the flat faces l of the valley sectors. Midway between the bends at the top edges I2 and the bends IS the side walls are perforated to provide a number of ventilating holes l8.

Where sectors forming the roof structure are joined a lap joint is formed, as at l9, Figure 4, between an upturned side wall flange 20 and a depending side Wall flange 2 I. These lapped wall portions may be spot Welded, or secured by metal screws, as desired. When all sectors are joined the top has a circular plan aspect, and a substantially conical elevation. The inner edges of the sectors, however, do not mutually meet to form an apex, but are cut so that a circular vent hole 23 is formed.

The perimeter of the top is scalloped to attain a pleasing appearance by cutting arcuate curves 25 and 26 at the ends of the ridge and valley sectors, respectively, and then bending the higher curved end portions 25 of the ridge sector ends downward at an angle to form tabs 27 so their outer edges lie in approximately the same plane as that of the arcuate ends 26 of the valley sectors. These tab ends 27 serve to close the outer ends of the ridge sectors.

Vent hole 23 is covered by a conical cap 29, directly beneath this is an inverted conical rest 30 with its perimeter 3| contacting the under side of the flat channel faces I5. These two conical elements are secured together by a long bolt 33 extending thru their apices. This serves to clamp the central portions of the top sectors together and the lower apex portion 34 of the lower cone forms an adequate pivotal support for the entire top. A strengthening ring 30a may be attached to the lower face of top 2 when desired.

The staif 3 is composed of an upper nipple 3B threaded at each end, a sleeve 31 screwed onto its top end, a sleeve 38 threaded onto its lower end, a length of tubing 40 threaded into the lower end, and rotatably supported in a socket tube ll, at its lower end.

Top mounting and operating mechanism 5 includes the following: The upper sleeve 3i, into which the lower pointed portion 34 of inverted cone support 30 is inserted, forms a pivotal socket allowing the top to tilt relative to the axis of the nipple. Hold down and pivot bar 44, extends thru diametrically positioned holes 4 5 in the lower sleeve 38. One upwardly extending arm 46 of this bar hooks onto clevis M attached to one of the side walls of a top ridge sector on the under face of the top. The opposite upwardly extendin arm 48 hooks onto a clevis Bil similarly supported on the top and diametrically opposite to clevis 41.

The length of these bar arms is such that, 

